Fahdawi was one of 110 detainees who escaped the prison in 2012, following a riot and an attack by forces from the Islamic State of Iraq.[2] He had learnt from the senior ISIS leaders he had been imprisoned with, and he became a field commander in Anbar province after his release.[2] Iraqi officials blamed him for a long list of terror-related offences and put a $50,000 bounty on him.[3]

By 2014, Fahdawi was playing an important role in leading combat operations of the group, now known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, in Anbar.[9]

According to transcripts, Omar Mateen, the perpetrator of the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, said that the attack was a response to the killing of Abu Waheeb.[10] Mateen stated his attack was "triggered" by a 6 May 2016 U.S. bombing strike that killed Abu Waheeb. Mateen's words were: “That’s what triggered it, OK? They should have not bombed and killed Abu [Waheeb].”[11]

^Caitlin Doornbos (23 September 2016). "Transcripts of 911 calls reveal Pulse shooter's terrorist motives". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 28 September 2016. Mateen referred to a U.S.-led air strike on May 6 that killed Abu Wahib, an ISIS military commander in Iraq, and three other jihadists, according to the Pentagon. “That’s what triggered it, OK?” Mateen said. “They should have not bombed and killed Abu [Waheeb].”

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